Vince Cable promises 'exit from Brexit' as he becomes new Liberal Democrat leader

Vince Cable is the new Liberal Democrat leader
Reuters
LONDON — Sir Vince Cable has pledged to campaign for "an exit from Brexit" as he was appointed the new leader of the Liberal Democrats.

Cable was confirmed as the party's new leader at a press conference in central London on Thursday afternoon.

The former Business Secretary said the Lib Dems would fight to prevent Britains exit from the EU.

"What we now need is an exit from Brexit," he said, adding that voters must be allowed another referendum on Britain's membership of the EU at the end of the two year Article 50 process.

He said the Lib Dems would now fill the centre ground in British politics vacated by Labour and the Conservatives.

"We have this gigantic hole in the middle of British politics," he said.

"The two major parties have been captured by ideologues. Ideologues on the one hand who hate Europe and on the other hand ideologues who hate capitalism. As a result politics is more polarised and divided than at any time I can remember."

"What is missing is common sense and mutual respect... My aim is that my party will occupy that space."

The veteran MP for Twickenham announced his candidacy last month following the resignation of Tim Farron. However, no other Liberal Democrat figures entered the race to succeed Farron, meaning the party was able to crown Cable its new leader when nominations closed at 16:00 (BST) today.

Farron announced that he would be stepping down as Liberal Democrat leader in June after facing weeks of tough questioning during the general election campaign about his views on homosexuality as a devout Christian.

Cable thanked Farron for his time leading the party.

"I now inherit a party that is considerably stronger... and which now has a national reach," he said.

The MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale — who was elected the party's leader in July 2015 — said in a statement earlier this year that it felt "impossible" to continue as leader of the Liberal Democrats and live "as a faithful Christian".

A number of Lib Dem figures were initially tipped to contest the vacancy including MPs Ed Davey, Norman Lamb, and Jo Swinson, who was elected the party's deputy leader last month. However, senior party figures agreed that Cable should be allowed a free-run at the leadership, allowing him to take over and oversee a period of stability.

The Liberal Democrats made a net gain of three seats at the election, taking their tally up to 12 in the House of Commons. However, the party's vote dropped to 7.4%, despite early talk of a resurgence fuelled by Remain voters.

Cable told Business Insider earlier this month that he planned to transform the Liberal Democrats into a "constructive opposition" to the Conservative government if elected leader. He vowed to appeal to millions of "moderate" voters who feel alienated by how the Tories and Jeremy Corbyn's Labour Party have handled Britain's departure from the European Union.

He also told BI that he believes the British public will eventually favour another referendum on Britain's membership of the EU once the economic impacts of leaving become clearer.

"But it may be that at the end of it, we are faced with a stark choice between crashing out of the EU with a no deal or a very bad deal, or on the other hand going back to membership," the former Business Secretary said.

"That's why my party argues that we should have a further vote on this. That didn't resonate with voters at this year's election. We all know that. It was premature and people thought we were harking back to the last one. But in two years time when it's very clear what the economic impacts are I think the public will welcome that kind of option."